Chef Bruce Wood's Recipes of the week
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My name is Bruce Wood and I have been a chef since 1984. I did my apprenticeship in Toronto at the Hazelton Café and attended George Brown college when it was still in Kensington market. This is when my love for all things local started to really take hold.

I would wander the market on my breaks looking for new and exciting foods to work with and meet many vendours and local food producers. I moved to Ottawa in 1992 and worked in several restaurants before winding up at Mariposa Farm. Working for the owners Ian & Suzanne was one of the most liberating culinary experiences any chef could ever experience. For 3 years I wrote the menus for Sunday lunch and all the functions using only products from the farm or other small local food producers and farmers.

We developed a series of successful cooking classes featuring these local products. In September of last year I left the farm to get married and am currently teaching at Algonquin College where I have taught part time for the past 4 years. I also do guest appearances on Rogers and the new RO and teach in many small venues around Ottawa. I am very excited to be involved with Bryson farms and look forward to finding new and wonderful ways to prepare the fruits of their labours.

Spring in the vegetable patch

Spring is probably my favourite time of year to cook. As you get your baskets each week you find more things that have been unfolding themselves from the earth. The lovely bright flavours of rhubarb, fiddleheads, asparagus and morels are all harbingers of the bounty to come. Here are a couple of non traditional uses for some things you might find in the baskets.

4 salsify roots, washed and shredded
1 small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
juice of one half lemon
1/4 tsp. white sugar
1 tsp. caraway seeds
2 tbsp. chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/4cup prepared mayonaise (homemade or store bought)
1 tsp. whole grain mustard
sea salt and freshly milled black pepper to taste

In a bowl combine the red onion, lemon juice and sugar. Let marinate for 10 minutes. Combine the onions with the remaining ingredients. Serve as a side salad with grilled meats or as part of a mixed appetizer plate with cheeses and cold meats.

One pound fiddleheads, washed and cleaned
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1tbsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. sesame seeds
one clove garlic, minced
sea salt and freshly milled black pepper to taste

Blanch the fiddleheads in a large pot of salted water until just done. Remove to a bowl of cold water and cool. Drain the fiddleheads and reserve.
In a heavy bottomed saute pan heat the butter until it turns brown and begins to smell like hazelnuts. Add the sesame oil, sesame seeds and garlic and stir well. Add the fiddleheads and cook for one minute. Season to taste and serve.

For me chutney is one of the great all purpose condiments to have on hand. As an accompaniment for everything from meatloaf to grilled cheese, I use it with just about everything.

2 lbs. New potatoes, white and red
1 lb. fiddleheads, washed
4 oz. white wine
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp. whole grain mustard
2 tbsp. chopped fresh chives
3 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. poppyseeds
1 cup olive oil
sea salt and freshly milled black pepper to taste

Blanch the fiddleheads in a large pot of salted water until just done. Remove to a bowl of cold water and cool.
Drain the fiddleheads and reserve.
Cook the new potatoes in salted water until just cooked. Drain and cut in half, while the potatoes are still warm toss with the white wine. Set aside.
In the workbowl of a food processor combine the vinegar, mustard, herbs, poppyseeds and egg yolk and mix to combine. With the motor running add the oil in a steady stream. Remove to a clean container and season to taste.
Mix together the poppyseed dressing, fiddleheads and potatoes and serve .